Trance's Tale
by krashkart
Summary: "Trance, do you remember when I told you that there was going to be a day when you would have to tell me about your past? It's that day." An Alternity series story
1. Prologue

This story is part of my Alternity Universe s series. If you are unfamiliar with the series you can find the other stories in the series at my web site

/table_of_

**Trance's Tale**

_Time: CY 10088 May 5166_

_Location: Bathsheba spaceport_

"Hey, spacer. Looking for a good time?"

Harper looked at the young woman who had just approached him. She was only a few years older than Trance and would have been pretty if she hadn't been wearing so much makeup it functioned more like a mask than a beauty enhancement. Then there was the fact that her eyes were showing the pearly hue of a Flash addict.

"Uh, no thanks," he said raising his left hand and pointing at his finger to show the wedding ring he was wearing. "I'm waiting for someone."

"What your wife doesn't know won't hurt her," pressed the prostitute. "Come on, I bet I can show you tricks she's never even thought of."

"But I do know," came a voice from behind the woman. "And I seriously doubt that you can show him anything I haven't already done with him."

The woman whirled around to see an outraged Trance, holding her and Harper's infant daughter Aurora, and an equally outraged Beka standing behind her. She started to speak then stopped as if a memory had made its way through her drug addled brain. "Grape?" she asked tentatively. "Is that really you?"

A mixture of emotions passed over Trance's face. Outrage was replaced by puzzlement when the prostitute called her by name, then puzzlement was replaced by recognition. "Jenni?"

"It's me Grape." The woman looked at the infant in Trance's arms, then at Harper and finally back to Trance. "Married and with a kid. You've done well since you left us." She looked at Beka. "You the mother in law?"

"No," said Beka, not quite sure how she should be reacting to the woman. "I'm the master of the starship Eureka Maru. Trance is my environmental systems technician."

Trance handed Aurora to Beka then stepped forward to take a closer look at her old acquaintance. "What 's happened to you Jenni? You swore you'd never use Flash. And what are you covering up with your makeup, bruises?" She took one of Jenni's hands turning it over to examine the skin on the underside of the arm. She then moved some of the woman's hair taking a look at her ear and neck. There was a distinct yellowish tinge to her skin "You've got jaundice," said Trance. "The Flash is destroying your liver."

"You were always good with medicine, Grape. Good at other things too. I guess we should have listened when you told Concepcion and me to come with you. Environmental systems technician on a starship as well as having a family. You really did find your perfect future."

Trance tugged on her friend's hand. "You need to come with me, Jenni. There's a clinic not too far from here. They can check you out and refer you to someone who can help you with your Flash usage. I can pay for it."

Jenni disengaged her hand from Trance's. "It's too late for that, Grape. I've seen the docs. The damage to my liver's too far gone. I've got to go. Fagin will beat me senseless if I don't bring back my due. I'll tell Concepcion I saw you. She'll be glad to know you're doing well. Good luck and stay safe."

"Jenni, wait," cried Trance tears beginning to form in her eyes. But the other girl continued walking.

For a moment there was silence as Beka and Harper tried to digest what they had just witnessed. Then Beka spoke up. "Trance, do you remember when I told you that there was going to be a day when you would have to tell me about your past? It's that day. We're going back to the Maru. Then you're going to tell Harper and me all about Jenni and this Concepcion and Fagin and just what you were doing on Bathsheba when I found you."


	2. Chapter 1

_Time: CY 10084 April 5161  
Location: Bathsheba spaceport_

In a deserted warehouse devoted to temporarily storing goods recently offloaded from visiting spaceships an old fashioned wooden crate began to rock back and forth. The rocking increased until the box fell over onto its side. A moment later a portion of the top of the crate was pushed open and a figure wearing a particoloured catsuit wriggled out of the crate. The figure was young, petite, and female, but definitely not human. The two most obvious things that announced she wasn't human were her skin color and her tail. Her skin was purple, in places it actually sparkled as if some one had sprinkled glitter dust over her, while her tail, which was currently wrapped around a backpack, would have if it was erect stretched from the base of her spine to just over her shoulder. A closer inspection would have revealed that the tops of her ears were not rounded like a humans but pointed, rather like an elf's from Earth's mythology.

"_Well that was easy enough_," thought the girl as she swung the back pack up and onto her shoulders._ "Now all I have to do is find the Andromeda Ascendant. I bet the port authorities know where she is."_ Then after ensuring that the area really was deserted and no one would notice her leaving the warehouse, she left the warehouse and headed towards the largest building in the spaceport area.

The Bathsheba spaceport wasn't too different from the spaceport on the girl's home world, if anything the Bathsheba spaceport was the busier of the two spaceports. The sun was different however. It appeared much larger than the sun her planet orbited. The girl's limited knowledge of astronomy told her that it must look bigger because Bathsheba was closer to it while the fact that the temperature seemed not too different from her home suggested that Bathsheba's sun was cooler than her home world's.

Bathsheba's spaceport was cosmopolitan enough that non humans were if not common at least not a rarity. She attracted a few curious glances, and a few more frankly appreciative ones from the males working the area, as she headed towards what she assumed was the administration building but ignored them all. Her problems started when she made her inquires about the _Andromeda Ascendant._ There was no ship by that name in port, nor were there any records stating that it would be arriving on Bathsheba anytime soon.

"_That's the trouble with precognition_," thought the girl. She was an optimist by nature and refused to let a minor thing like having to wait for the starship to arrive dampen her spirits. _"Sometimes you know something is going to happen, but just not when. I guess I'll just have to find a place to stay for a day or so until she arrives."_

It wasn't until she tried to rent a room at one of the hotels near the spaceport that she realized that things might not go as smoothly as she had hoped. "I'm sorry, miss, said the man at the receptionist desk, looking down at the collection of crystals before him, "but we don't accept off planet currency. You'll have to get it exchanged to crowns before you can rent a room."

Annoyed but still unperturbed she followed the desk clerk's directions to the nearest bank only to be met by rejection once more. "I'm sorry ma'am," said the teller "but we don't have any exchange rates for your currency. In fact the bank has no record of your home planet at all. I'm afraid we won't be able to help you."

By now it was getting late and the sun was starting to set. She was getting tired and hungry as well. She still had most of a bottle of water in her backpack, but she had eaten the last of the food she had brought with her while she was still hiding in the crate. It was also getting chilly. She remembered a grassy area not too far from the bank. There had been people walking and picnicking in the area when she had arrived at the bank. Maybe she could spend the night there. The park was mostly deserted. She picked an area that was partly sheltered by bushes, thinking it might protect her from the wind that was starting to pick up. Then using her backpack for a pillow she lay down and attempted to sleep ignoring the growls coming from her stomach.

Her slumber was interrupted by someone tapping her on the leg. She woke up to see a uniformed man standing over her. "I'm sorry, miss but I can't let you sleep in a public park. I don't know what you're doing here but I can call the child welfare authorities if you need help."

"No thank you, sir" lied the girl shamelessly, realizing that the man must be some sort of police officer or security guard. "I really should be getting home. It was a busy day and I thought I'd lie down for a few minutes and rest. I must have fallen asleep. My parents will be frantic. I need to get home."

"Well...," the policeman looked reluctant as if he wasn't sure he should let the girl go.

"It's really is OK, sir. Please don't take me in. I'll be in even more trouble than I'm going to be in now if they have to pick me up."

The police officer nodded his acceptance. "You'd better contact them and let them know you're on your way. I don't want to find out there's a missing child report out on you when I get back to Headquarters."

"Thank you sir," said the girl as she picked up her backpack and began to walk back towards the business district. As soon as the officer was out of sight the girl sat down on one of the benches near a public transit stop. She closed her eyes and very quickly fell asleep.

Her sleep was once more interrupted by someone nudging her leg. This time the nudger wasn't in uniform. He was considerably older than the girl, possibly in his forties, expensively dressed with rings on several fingers of each hand. He smiled down at the girl. "Looks like you didn't have any luck getting your money changed at the bank."

The girl scrambled to her feet noticing that it was early morning. "What do you mean? How did you know I had trouble in the bank?"

"I was there when you were talking to the teller yesterday. You probably didn't notice me but I noticed you." He paused and smiled as if to soften the possible ways the sentence could be taken. "There can't be too many purple girls with tails in the port. Let me guess, you were on one of the ships that landed yesterday, working passage so to speak, and the captain dumped you when when he got bored with you. I've seen it happen before.

"I think I might be able to help you out. I know a couple of girls about your age that could use another roommate to help pay the rent. Why don't I introduce you to them. I have a ground car nearby. We can use that. My name is Fagin, by the way. What's should I call you?"

The girl's instincts and her stomach began a heated debate. Her instincts said that Fagin shouldn't be trusted. Her stomach argued that trust was a luxury when starvation was the alternative. When Fagin offered to buy her breakfast and mentioned that it was supposed to rain that night her instincts surrendered to her stomach's arguments.

"Trance, Trance Gemini."


	3. Chapter 2

The home that Fagin had mentioned was in the Lowport district. The Bathsheba spaceport, like most spaceports subsidized by the Free Trade Alliance, was built in a remote location of the planet. In Bathsheba's case this was in the extreme southern portion of the largest continent in the planet's southern hemisphere. And like most spaceports it was a contrast between rich and poor. Spaceports all tended to evolve in the same fashion, at first being little more than landing facilities and warehouses, then an 'entertainment' district grew up around the landing pads, the entertainment consisting mostly of bars, brothels, gambling dens, pawnshops and other places designed to separate transient spacers from their money. The workers in these establishments needed places to live and buy the necessities for their lives so soon a small residential and commercial district came into being, with the owners of these establishments preying on their clients as voraciously as the entertainers preyed on the spacers. If the spaceport was a busy one, other more reputable businesses established themselves and a second commercial and residential district developed. Eventually the spaceport would become almost two different cities. The commercial district became known as Hightown or Highport while the entertainment district was generally known as Lowtown or Lowport.

Even by Lowport standards the section of town the home was located in was run down. Many of the buildings looked like converted warehouses with wide doorways that had been bricked up or boarded over, and all of them appeared dilapidated and in need of repairs. The majority of the inhabitants of the area looked nearly as worn down as the buildings. Trance noticed several young men loitering on one of the corners. They began to approach Fagin's ground car than backed off, apparently deciding that Fagin was neither a potential employer nor prey. The home that Fagin finally stopped at was a two story affair. The windows on the bottom floor were all covered by security bars. Like all the others it looked run down, unlike most of the others it appeared as if the inhabitants were actually trying to maintain the house. Fagin got out of the car and opened the other door for Trance then walked up to the house. There was a cypher lock on the door which Fagin quickly keyed open. He was obviously a privileged visitor. "Let's meet your new roommates," he said to Trance as he opened the door and stepped inside.

The door opened into a living room There were three women, girls actually, in the room when Fagin stepped inside. Two were watching a program on a entertainment console that was perched precariously on a rickety looking table while a third was sleeping on a worn looking couch. Looks of alarm followed by looks of caution crossed the faces of two watching the console as Fagin stepped into the room.

One of the girls got out of the chair she had been sitting in and approached Fagin and Trance. She was wearing a dress that revealed a great deal of cleavage and accentuated her hourglass figure. There was a look of wariness in her deep set black eyes.

Fagin took a long and appreciative look at the girl. "Decided that there are more lucrative ways of earning a living than what you've been doing I see. You should do quite well."

"Not on your life, Fagin," said the girl. "I don't turn tricks. But when a guy is staring at my boobs he isn't watching my hands. Who's your friend?"

"Meet your new roommate, Jenni," said Fagin, pushing Trance forward as he spoke. "Just off one of the ships that landed yesterday. I found her trying, and failing, to exchange currency at the bank and decided she might be welcome here."

"That's not a person," said the other awake girl who was peering at Trance through close slitted eyes. She was slouched in a pile of cushions in one corner of the room. Her reddish blonde hair was weaved into dreadlocks and badly needed washing. "That's a piece of fruit, a grape." She caught sight of Trance's tail "Or maybe an animal. Its got a tail. You bringing us a pet, Fagin?"

"My name's Trance," said Trance rather hurt by the implication that she was somehow subhuman because of her tail.

"Your name's Grape if I say it's Grape, Grape."

"Enough, Lita," said the girl Fagin had called Jenni. Then to Trance she added "Nobody around here uses the name they were born with, and Grape fits you."

"I suppose it's better than being called animal," said Trance. She shot Lita a dirty look as she spoke.

"Good," said Jenni obviously pleased that Trance wasn't going to start a fight within minutes of walking in the door. "You just met Lita. Let me introduce you to Concepcion. She must have had a really rough night to be out like this. Concepcion, wake up. We have a guest." When the girl on the couch failed to respond Jenni went over and shook her. "Wake up you lazy slug," she said.

Trance walked over to the couch as the girl opened her eyes.

"Concepcion, this is Grape. She's going to be staying with us for a while."

"Pleased to meetcha," said the girl on the couch. There was a slur in her voice and almost as soon as she had finished speaking her eyes lost focus and she lay back down on the couch. There was something about the unfocused look in the girl's eyes that unsettled Trance. And there had been something odd about her smile as well.

"Well, Grape," said Fagin, as he headed for the door, "I'll let you get acquainted with your new roommates. I'm sure Jenni will be able to think of something you can do to help pay for your share of the rent. I'll be seeing you latter at the shop, Jenni. Your dues will be due soon. You don't want to be late with them again."

"That's just like him to leave the work to me," muttered Jenni as the door closed behind Fagin. "He runs half the rackets in Lowport, but always has someone else do the real work." She turned her attention towards Trance "Fagin said you just came in off one of the ships in port. Where you from and what are you doing here?"

"I left because I didn't like the future my family was planning for me," said Trance deliberately not answering the first part of the question. "So I left to find my perfect future, and here I am."

"Ah", said Jenni putting two and two together and getting five. "An arranged marriage. I bet it was with some man old enough to be your grandfather."

"How old are you anyway, Grape?"asked Lita.

"I'm just over seven," answered Trance not bothering to correct Jenni on her misunderstanding as to why she had left her home.

"You expect us to believe that you're seven?" said Lita scornfully. "Don't give me that crap,"

"Back off Lita," ordered Jenni as she held out her hand in a 'stop' position. "It's your own fault you didn't get your fix. Don't take it out on everyone else. You're lucky that spacer didn't beat you to a pulp when he caught you with your hands on his credit stick." Then to Trance she said, "She's always bitchy when she doesn't get her fix. I'm guessing you mean you're seven in your homeworld's years. About how old would that be in Bathsheba years?"

"How long is a year here?"

"Three hundred and eighty two days," answered Jenni

Trance did some calculations in her head. A day here seemed about as long as one on her home world. "Then I guess I'm about 15 in your years. I think."

"That makes you the baby then," said Jenni. "I'm nearly twenty and the oldest. Concepcion just turned seventeen two weeks ago. Miss cranky cause I got careless, over there is 18."

"Is Concepcion always like that?" asked Trance.

"What do you mean like that?" asked Jenni taking a quick glance over to where Concepcion was sleeping. "She said she had a rough night, last night. She's just beat."

Trance shook her head in disagreement. "I think it's more than that. When she smiled at me I noticed only one side of her mouth curved upwards and her gaze seemed, well a little off, unfocused. Has she suffered a head injury lately? She really should be checked out."

"What would you know about that sort of thing,?" challenged Lita getting up from the pile of cushions and glowering at Trance. "You're not even human, you're a grape"

Trance shifted a bit uncomfortably but held her ground. She had already decided she liked Jenni, and that she wouldn't let Lita near any of her personal belongings. "My species is close enough to yours that some things are the same. Or do you keep your brains somewhere else than in your head? Just how do you think I learned Common? My people may not have much contact with yours but we have some."

"Are you sure Concepcion has a head injury?" asked Jenni taking another look at the sleeping girl. She positioned herself between the two other girls just in case Lita decided to get physical with Trance after seeing that her attempts to verbally intimidate the younger girl had failed. "The clinics and hospitals around here aren't much for charity work."

"I'm not absolutely sure," admitted Trance. "Just pretty sure. That's why I asked if she's normally like that."

"Now that you mention it, no. But still, if you're wrong..."

A touch of impatience showed in Trance's eyes and voice and her tail twitched in an aggravated manner. "If' I'm wrong and you take her to a clinic you lose some money. If I'm right and you don't she could loose her life. Which is more important to you?"

"Ok," said Jenni reaching for the cloak that was hanging on a hook by the door. "We'll do it your way, but if it turns out she's just tired you're going to be the one who pays the clinic. Come on, help me get her up. I don't want to take her to the clinic by myself and I'm not going to take Lita and leave you here by yourself. So you're coming with me."


	4. Chapter 3

"You were right, Grape," said Jenni "The doc says she has a serious concussion and could have died if we hadn't brought her in. He says her last date must have liked to play rough. You may have saved her life. I guess you knew what you were talking about after all."

The girls were in what passed for a local clinic's emergency room and were discussing the report that the doctor had given them after he had examined Concepcion. The doctor was recommending that Concepcion stay in the clinic for 24 hours for observation, provided of course that payment was forthcoming. Fortunately it was still early in the day and there were a few beds available. By evening however it would be a different story. Jenni, after a nod from Trance had agreed.

"The doctor gave me a communicator number I could call tonight to see how she's doing," said Jenni. "I want to record it on my flexie before I forget it." She reached up to the neckline of her dress then swore softly. "Damn, where did I put my stylus? I thought I put it right here."

Trance reached over to the other side on Jenni's neckline and removed the tool that many people used to input data into a flexie. "Here it is," she said holding up the slender wand.

"You've got quick hands. You could help us out a lot in our work."

"You mean in your act? I've never acted before."

"Act?" asked Jenni. "Just what do you think I do for a living,Grape?"

"Well I remember you telling Mr Fagin something about doing tricks and that you wanted people to watch your breasts rather than your hands. Are you a performer? A magician?"

Jenni opened her mouth in astonishment then closed her eyes and shook her head as if she couldn't quite believe she heard what she thought she heard. "Maybe you really are seven," she said. "Let me make it simple. I'm a dipper, a pickpocket." Seeing Trance's confused look she cut to the chase. "I'm a thief. I steal other peoples stuff for a living."

"But stealing's wrong," objected Trance.

"So's starving," said Jenni, "and if my choice is stealing or starving I'm going to steal." She retrieved her stylus from Trance and continued on.

"Look, Grape, I don't know what's it's like where you come from but here nothing's free. You saw what I had to promise to ensure that Concepcion wouldn't be sent home early if someone else came by and offered more money for her bed. If you want to eat and have a roof over your head you have to pay for it. And it's not that easy to find work around here. About the only way anyone finds work here is if someone puts in a good word for you, and then you had still better be prepared to grease the palm of whoever is going to hire you. It's all about who you know, not what you know. If you know the right people you can get a cushy well paying job but if you don't know anyone important you end up on the streets."

"Can't your family help you?" asked Trance not yet willing to accept Jenni's explanation.

"Would you go back to yours if you could?" countered Jenni. Taking Trance's silence for agreement she continued. "I wouldn't go back to mine either. Not as long as my father is still breathing anyway. But if you want to stay with Concepcion, Lita and me you're going to have to pay your way. You can leave if you want, but what are you going to do then? You don't have any money for food let alone a place to stay and it's going to be getting cold soon. Besides it's not as if we really hurt anyone when we steal from them."

"What do you mean by that?"

"The spacers that come to the port live on their ships. They always have a place to stay and food to eat. The money we take from them is just their entertainment money. It's not like we're taking money they need to survive.

"So what's it going to be, Grape? We owe you for helping Concepcion so you can spend the night with us and have breakfast with us tomorrow morning, but any more than that and you're going to have to earn your keep."

"I'm waiting till I meet the Andromeda Ascendant," said Trance. She was fidgeting uneasily, her tail twitching back and forth in agitation. "It's going to take me to my perfect future. The one I saw in my vision."

"You're here because of something you saw in a dream?" Jenni dropped her stylus. She had quick hands as well, catching it before it hit the floor. "You don't need roommates, Grape, you need a keeper. This place is going to eat you alive." The stubborn look that came over Trance's face told the older girl that sarcasm wasn't going to accomplish anything. She decided to try a different tactic. "Look, Grape" she said reaching out to take hold of Trance's arms to emphasize her point. "Lets agree your vision was real. That this Andromeda Ascendant is going to come and take you to your perfect future. When is it coming and how are you going to survive until then? Did your vision show you that?"

"No," said Trance, her tail now hanging limply behind her as she was forced to concede Jenni's point. "It didn't."

"Then your choice is pretty much stick with us or strike out on your own, and hope you'll live long enough to meet your rescuer."

"I guess I don't have much of a choice do I," said Trance.

"We always have choices," said Jenni looking down at the stylus in her hands. "Choices are easy. It's living with the results of your choice that's hard."


	5. Chapter 4

Trance turned out to be a natural born pickpocket. As Jenni had noticed earlier she had quick hands. She was also a natural actress as well, a skill that was useful when she was assisting the other girls. While the other girls blended into the crowd Trance was far to easy to remember so she generally worked with Jenni or Concepcion as a decoy. She became a skillful stall, bumping into her target and then falling down allowing Jenni or Concepcion to steal from their mark while he was assisting Trance. She also became good at working the bars feigning drunkenness and spilling a drink on her victim. She would then rob him while she was apologizing profusely and attempting to clean him off. After lifting an item she would then pass it off to one of the other two girls in the bar who in turn would take the loot to Fagin. Trance was stopped for questioning by the police so many times that she was on a first name, 'how's the family doing' basis with most of the officers who worked the spaceport area. They knew what she was doing but they were never able to catch her with the pilfered goods.

Unlike many of the other thieves working the spaceport the girls had a certain empathy for their victims. When possible they tried to leave their mark with a little cash, generally just enough to get a cab back to their home or ship. On a couple of memorable instances one of the girls found her self being taken out to dinner by a likable young man after she had fulfilled her function as a stall and then footed the tab when her escort realized to his consternation that he had been robbed. Jenni was adamant that violence was never to be used in one of their scams. Nor was drugging a mark's drink when they were working the bar scene. Her rationalization was that it was to dangerous for all concerned and that it was more likely to get the authorities involved than a simple grab and go. In reality, the girls simply weren't the type of girl that would willing hurt another person.

The girls generally targeted the visiting spacers. There were two reasons for their choice . One it was normally safer since the spacers rarely complained to the local authorities when they found their pockets had been lightened, and when they did the police would only search halfheartedly for the culprits, since unlike the local inhabitants of the spaceport the spacers would generally lift off planet before any of the girls could be brought up before a magistrate. The FTA enforcers who occasionally patrolled some areas of the port were an entirely different matter however. While they normally didn't get involved in something as minor as a pickpocketing, leaving such crimes to the local police, they were relentless when they did get involved. People who were taken by the FTA were rarely seen again, and when they were they were broken shells of what they had been before.

The second reason the girls targeted visiting spacers was that it was generally more lucrative to steal from the visitors. The majority of Bathsheba citizens, or at least those who had enough money to be worth robbing, rarely carried cash. Bathsheba's banks and upper class shops used a biometric funds transfer system. A client would lay his or her hand on a scanning screen which would identify the palm and vein prints of the customer as well as their DNA and then transfer funds from the client's account to the shop's account. Transients such as spacers weren't tied into the local system and either carried cash or credit sticks where were as good as cash. Other than jewelry the locals rarely carried anything of value for the girls to steal and while Trance was soon an accomplished pickpocket even she had to admit that removing a pair of diamond studded pierced earrings was beyond her capabilities, though more than one local found himself without a watch or broach after an encounter with her.

In addition to developing a quick hand when it came to filching the contents of a pocket Trance also developed a steady hand with a stitching needle. It didn't take long for the word to get out that she had an above knowledge of medicine. No one took her for a doctor but she could stitch up a wound or lance a boil as well as any medico and for considerably less than a doctor would charge. It wasn't a large or steady income but it helped put food on the table and more importantly generated a certain amount of good will towards the girls.

If Trance, Jenni, and Concepcion were coming up in their world, Lita was descending. She was now completely dependent on Flash. The only way she could support her habit was as a full time prostitute. At first Jenni was sympathetic but as the Flash took a deeper hold over Lita and her temperament, which was uneven at best, became more and more bellicose and hostile towards the other girls her patience began to wear thin. Eventually she was only allowing Lita to remain in the house so Concepcion and Trance could see what the consequences Lita's choices in life led to. Her patience finally snapped completely when she and the other two girls noticed that some of their personal belongings were missing. Her confrontation with Lita escalated from words into blows and then escalated even further when Lita pulled a knife. Jenni might have been seriously hurt if Concepcion and Trance hadn't joined the fray. When the girls were separated and Lita disarmed, Jenni ordered Lita to pack up her personal belongings and get out of their apartment. Still screaming insults and vowing to get even Lita left.


	6. Chapter 5

At first the thefts seemed almost like a game to Trance. There was a certain amount of exhilaration in removing a mark's jewelry or credit stick while knowing there was a possibility of being caught, but it wasn't too long before she realized that while staying with Jenni and the other girls was safer than being alone, it was a precarious safety at best. Trance and Concepcion were in the pawn shop Fagin owned and used a a conduit for stolen goods haggling with him over the value of a watch Trance had stolen earlier in the day when a pair of strangers walked into the building. One was a man about 30 years old, well dressed but with eyes that were colder than ice. He made Trance nervous just looking at him. The other was a girl about Trance's age. She was dressed in such a way as to be mostly undressed. The most noticeable thing about her attire wasn't her lack if clothing but the choke collar that was fastened around her neck. There was a chain leading from the collar to a wrist strap on the man's left hand. The girl's face was down turned her eyes gazing emptily at the floor but the posture didn't prevent Trance from seeing the bruises on the girl's face.

"Hello, Bill," said Fagin. "What can I do for you today? Perhaps some earrings for your pet? What do you say, Molly would you like something pretty to wear?"

The girl turned her head to the man Fagin had called Bill a questioning look in her eyes.

"You have permission to speak," he said.

"Yes please," said the girl in in a tone of voice so soft that Trance could barely hear her, her face once more turned downwards. "If it pleases my master to buy them I would like that."

"That's enough Molly," said the man reinforcing has words with a tug on the leash which caused the girl to struggle for breath as the collar tightened around her neck.

"You're too hard on your toys, Bill," said Fagin momentarily forgetting that Trance and Concepcion were still in the room. "You break them too quickly."

"Then I'll come to you for another one. What about her?" He pointed to Trance. "She's an exotic one. Is she available?"

Fagin's eyes narrowed as he realized that Trance and Concepcion were still in the room. "I think not," he said. "Grape's a long term investment." He turned his attention fully towards the two girls. "Our business here is done. You have my offer, take it or leave it."

The girls took the money offered and hurriedly left the pawn shop.

"Who was that man and and the girl?" Trance asked once they were well clear of the shop.

"That was Bill Sikes and Molly. Sikes works for Fagin. When Fagin want's something bad to happen to someone Bill makes it happen. Molly used to work the marks like we do until Fagin wanted her to become a full time prostitute and she refused. So he gave her to that monster. I hear that she's not his first pet either. You saw the bruises on her face. One of these days he'll hit her too hard and then he'll be coming to see Fagin for a new toy."

"And the police allow it?"

Concepcion shrugged in a gesture of resignation "Nobody cares what happens to the people in Lowport," she said. "And no one says 'no' to Fagin, no one."

About six months after the meeting with Sikes, Trance learned exactly what Concepcion meant. She was sitting in their home's living room when she heard a knock on the door. She cracked the door open to see who it was and let out a terrified scream as the door was forced open, nearly hitting her in the face as it swung inward. Trance's scream brought the rest of the girls running into the living room where the sight of Sikes standing in the doorway brought them all to a terrified halt.

A glint of cruel amusement showed in Sikes' eyes as he savored the fear he was instilling in the girls. "Mr Fagin has a proposition for you, purple girl. He thinks you should learn how to pick locks. He thinks you and your friends can do better than petty thievery. He also expects you to accept his proposition."


	7. Chapter 6

Time passed and Trance, under Fagin's enforced tutelage, reluctantly became a proficient picklock. To add to the girls' woes Fagin had raised what he euphemistically called their dues but was in reality payoff money to be allowed to work as a thief in Lowport. He stated that now that the girls were making more money and since Trance needed to pay for the training he had provided for her, their dues would be going up. The fact that the girls didn't want to become burglars or that Trance didn't want the training never entered into the equation. When the girls attempted to balk Fagin sent Sikes over to the house to 'explain Mr Fagin's position'. He was accompanied by a new girl, apparently he had 'broken' Molly. When he had finished with his 'explanation' Concepcion had a dislocated shoulder, Trance had a broken bone in her tail from where Sikes had stomped on it and all three girls were bruised. As Concepcion had said 'nobody says no to Fagin' and with the threat of ending up like Molly hanging over their head the girls followed Fagin's orders.

The girls were still living in their old house but were spending more time in Highport than the entertainment area. They were also playing for higher stakes. The police hadn't come knocking at their door yet but it was obvious from the looks they were getting that the authorities had their suspicions about what they were doing. When they had been petty thieves stealing from visiting spacers the police had been able to wink and look the other way, rationalizing that the girls needed to eat and no one was really getting hurt, but breaking and entering was different. Not only were the girls targeting locals as well as visitors, but there was the chance that someone could get seriously hurt if the inhabitant of the dwelling they were robbing came in at the wrong time. It was only a matter of time before something went disastrously wrong.

The disaster came during the jewel wing convention. The jewel wing was a native Bathshebian animal much like an Earth butterfly. And like the butterfly was often collected, with some specimens being worth tens of thousands of crowns to other collectors. The girls had received a message from Fagin stating that an off planet collector had arrived with his collection and was currently staying in a hotel in Highport, and that Fagin knew someone who would be interested in acquiring the collection. He also stated that that it would be in the girls' best interests if they could acquire the collection for him and that they had best hurry since the visitor would be leaving the spaceport to attend the convention on the northern continent tomorrow. With virtually no time to plan Jenni and Trance decided that they would be the ones that burgled the room.

The hotel room's lock proved no challenge to Trance. She would have had a harder time picking the lock on the house were the girls lived. Within minutes they were in the room, had closed the door and begun looking for the collection. They were so focused on looking that they didn't hear the door open behind them. There first indication that they were no longer alone was when they heard a man's voice say.

"Hold it right there ladies and put your hands where we can see them."

Trance and Jenni spun around to see three hotel security guards in the doorway. Trance froze for a fraction of a second but Jenni didn't hesitate. The only possible way of escape was to go through the guards so she charged at them with Trance a step behind her. Fortunately for the girls the guards weren't armed with anything more lethal than come-alongs and tanglefoot gas sprayers and hadn't drawn the sprayers. The guards soon realized that they should have broken out the tanglefoot spray. Neither girl was a skilled fighter but they were both were strong, healthy and desperate. Two of the guards converged on Trance while the third grabbed Jenni. The guard who was grappling with Jenni made the mistake of bringing one of his hands too close to her mouth and she bit down hard at the same time Trance wrapped her tail around his leg and pulled. With a yelp of pain the guard released Jenni as he struggled and failed to retain his balance. Free from the guard's grasp Jenni used the opportunity to try to pull Trance loose from the grasp of the other two guards. When one of the guards grappling with Trance released his hold on her and tried to grab Jenni, the other girl broke free and ran from the room. The guard tried to follow her only to be tripped up by Trance's tail as it wrapped around his leg. With Jenni loose the guards turned her attention to Trance who seeing the situation was hopeless meekly surrendered.

A short time later Trance was in the port jail where she was booked, and her personal belongings cataloged and confiscated. She was allowed one free call. Rather than risk involving Concepcion in the fiasco she called Fagin, he wasn't in but she left a message. Fortunately the jail wasn't crowded at the moment and she had the holding cell to herself.

About mid-morning the next day the ward matron came by and opened her cell. "You've been released," she said. "There's someone waiting for you in the reception area."

The someone was Fagin. "You're free on bail he explained. The magistrate didn't think you're much of a flight risk. Lets go."

Fagin ignored Trance's thank yous, remaining stonily silent as they climbed into his ground car and drove back to his pawn shop. As soon as they were both inside he locked the door.

"Thank you Fagin," began Trance. "I..."

Whatever else she was going to say was cut off as Fagin slapped her so viciously that he knocked her to the floor.


	8. Chapter 7

"You little slut," he snarled his face twisted with rage. "Now the police have reason to connect me directly with your activities. You've just become a liability." He reached down grasped Trance by an arm, pulled her to her feet, then dragged the still stunned girl to one of the store's closets. He opened the door and literally threw her into the storage area. There was a distinct click as he locked the door.

As Trance's head began to hear she could pick out the sound of Fagin talking to someone. She placed her ear against the door in an attempt to hear what he was saying.

"The girl you wanted. The purple one. Are you still interested in her. Good because she's just come on the market. How soon can you get here? Fine. I'll have her ready for you"

_"Sikes,"_ thought Trance. _"He's going to give me to Sikes and before too long I'll be just like that girl Molly. I've got to get out of here."_

She tried the door. As she expected it was locked, but that wasn't necessarily the only way out of the storage closet. There was a window set high in one wall. Trance pushed a chair that was lying alongside the far wall up against the wall that held the window to take a better look. The window was small but it looked like she might be able to squeeze through it. She tried to push it open but the window resisted her efforts. It was locked.

Trance stopped to collect her thoughts and fight down the panic that was threatening to overwhelm her mind, then took a second look at the window. A humorless smile flashed across her face. Fagin's lock picking training was about to be turned against him. The lock was designed to keep people on the outside from getting in, not to keep people on the inside from getting out. A few moments later the window was open and she was wiggling through it. It was a tight squeeze and it cost some skin but a few moments later she was running down an alleyway to where she knew she could find a public communicator and contact Concepcion.

"Grape, where are you?" asked Concepcion when she answered the call.

"I don't want to say just where I am," said Trance interrupting her friend. "The police caught me and Jenni in the room. Jenni got away but they arrested me."

"I know," said Concepcion. "Jenni contacted me after you got caught. The police were here looking for her. The entire neighborhood has been talking about it. How did you get away from the police?"

"I didn't," said Trance. "I called Fagin and he got me loose."

"Oh no," wailed Concepcion. "You didn't. He'll make you disappear for sure. No one ties him to one of their crimes."

"He's already tried to make me disappear. He was going to give me to Bill Sikes."

"What?" despair was replaced by amazement. "How did you ... Never mind it's not important. Listen, Grape you have to get away from here. If you crossed Fagin you won't be safe anywhere. I'll bring some clothes and some other stuff. We'll meet where that spacer from the Emperor Baranoth took you after I plucked him. I'm going to pack your backpack. I'll meet you in two hours."

Two hours later Trance was sitting in a dimly lit coffee house staring anxiously at the door leading into the shop. She wasn't worried about being recognized by any of the staff or patrons. The shop was the sort of place where if a police officer asked any of the patrons if they had seen Trance the patron would deny it even if she was sitting on their lap. But there was still a chance that the police could come in while she was waiting for Jenni and Concepcion. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw Concepcion enter the building accompanied by a blonde woman. Then she recognized the other woman. It was Jenni. She had changed her hair color from dark brown to bleached blonde. After a quick set of hugs Concepcion handed Trance her backpack and they they sat down at the table

"Concepcion told me what happened," said Jenni, even before the coffee arrived. "You have to leave. Not just the spaceport, Bathsheba. You'll need to lie low for a few days till the police and Fagin stop actively looking for you then go to the spaceport and find someone who can take you off planet. It doesn't matter where they're going just as long as it's away from here. You know what they'll probably want in return for passage. I've tried to keep you away from that, but right now it's the only thing you're going to have to offer. If that's the price someone wants, pay it. I put one of my old working dresses and some makeup in the backpack. The dress is small for me so it should fit you."

"Jenni, Concepcion," said Trance, "the two of you can come with me. We can go someplace and start over. Find our perfect future together."

"Doing what, Grape? Stealing or selling our bodies? You have skills. You should be able to use your medical talents to find a job at a clinic or hospital somewhere. There's nothing for Concepcion and me out there except more of what we're doing here. Besides Sikes isn't interested in us. You're the one that needs to lay low and three girls, one of whom's purple are even more conspicuous than one purple girl. The best thing we can do for you is to act like we're trying to contact you. The police and Fagin will probably watch us thinking we'll lead them to you rather than spend time looking for you. And Fagin isn't going to do anything stupid if the police are watching Concepcion and me. Now stay here for a minute and let me check out the area to make sure no one is watching. If it's clear it's time for you to go."

She walked to the doorway stood for a moment observing the people nearby then waved her hand in a 'come on' fashion. As Trance came to the doorway Jenni and Concepcion both hugged her.

"It's time for you to go, Grape," said Jenni. " Find somewhere safe to hide until some starships come in. Don't try to contact us and tell us where you are. What we don't know we can't tell. Now get out of here. And go with the Divine."

Trance stepped out into the street and began to walk. She had an idea of where she could go to lay low. After a few steps she turned back to the coffee shop. Jenni and Concepcion were already walking away from the shop, their backs to her. They didn't see her wave or the tears that were streaming down her cheeks.


	9. Chapter 8

Trance's hideout was an abandoned restaurant in Highport. The restaurant had been sold to a group of developers who had planned to remodel and incorporate the restaurant into their conglomeration of restaurants, but the development project had gone broke when one of the partners embezzled the firm and the restaurant had been abandoned half way through the remodeling process. She and Concepcion had explored it one day wondering if it could be used as a hideout. They had spent an afternoon imagining themselves as dangerous criminals hiding from the law. Now it looked like the game had become reality.

The restaurant had two things to offer other than the fact that it was abandoned. The kitchen area still had running water which meant that thirst wouldn't be a problem. The second was that some of the glow tubes that most Highport establishments used for lighting still functioned. She wouldn't be spending the nights in complete darkness. She wouldn't be comfortable but she should be able to hide out for a while.

That was the good news. The bad news was that the food supply in her back pack was limited. Her money supply was even more limited, not that she dared to go outside and purchase any food. She was just going to have to stretch out what she had until a ship came in. Fortunately Concepcion had put Trance's communicator in the back pack. She would be able to contact the port authority and find out what ships were currently in port. All she had to do was lay low and things would work out.

A week later she wasn't so sure. She had finished the last of her food the day before and her stomach was complaining mightily. Fortunately there was a chance she might have a ride off planet. According to the port authority's ships in port recording four ships had arrived the night before. She went to the kitchen area of the restaurant and cleaned herself up as best she could, which thanks to the toiletries Jenni had provided was reasonably well. She then put on the dress Jenni had given her. It was time to leave. She was concerned about being recognized but fortunately hooded cloaks were currently in fashion. The cloak either Jenni or Concepcion had included would conceal her tail and hopefully the hood would conceal enough of her features so she would be taken for a dark complected Bathshebian. In any event she didn't have a choice in the matter. If she wanted to get off planet and away from Fagin and Sikes she was going to have to take the risk.

Deciding that arriving by public transport wold be safer than walking and would give her a bit more time to make herself presentable Trance used the little money she had to catch one of the public trams that ran to her old hunting grounds, the entertainment section located adjacent to the spaceport proper. Her main concern was that there would be a police person near her stop.

There weren't any in sight when she debarked so she stopped to think. Where would be the best place to start looking for someone who could give her what she needed. A regular crew member probably wouldn't be able to smuggle her aboard so she would have to find an officer who could bring her aboard openly. If she couldn't find someone she would have only one other option, to try to stow away on a vessel.

"Hold it right there, Grape." She felt a hand clamp painfully down on her wrist. Turning around and fearing the worst she saw, almost to her relief, that it was one of the port police in civilian garb. She couldn't remember his name but she remembered his face. He had questioned her on several previous occasions with the questioning sessions always turning into fatherly advice about how she should go home and stay out of trouble.

"How ... " she began only to stop. The answer was literally painfully obvious.

A hint of a smile crossed the police officer's face. "Next time you want to be inconspicuous remember to wear gloves." His tone changed becoming serious "You're in a lot of trouble, Grape," he said releasing his hold on her wrist ever so slightly slightly.

"I know," answered Trance. She didn't try to take advantage of the release in pressure. Where would she run to. "Being caught burglarizing a hotel room tends to do that."

"I don't mean that. Considering your age and you've no past record you'd probably only spend a couple of months in juvenile hall then be released to a foster family. I mean words out on the streets that Fagin is royally pissed off at you and he's told Sikes that if he can find you he can keep you. I'm going to need to take you in just to keep you safe."

"Safe for how long?" asked Trance. "The moment I'm released Sikes will be waiting for me. Do you think you could keep me safe then?"

The point was taken. The police officer looked uncomfortable as if he was deciding if he should spout some reassuring lies. Trance decided to press her advantage. "What you really need to do is protect Jenni and Concepcion. Fagin may go after them just to hurt me. Can you do that for me?"

"We'll do our best, Grape. You really weren't bad kids. You were a lot better than most of the others who worked the port area, but if Fagin or Sikes really wants them they'll get them if they stay here. Why aren't they with you?"

"I asked them to come with me. They said there was nothing for them out there." She gestured skyward with her free hand as she said out there

"There's nothing for them if they stay here. Nothing for you either. Even if you do get away from Fagin and Sikes." He looked at the dress she was wearing and the heavy makeup and shook his head sadly. "I hate to see you having to sell yourself for transportation off planet, but it's probably your only option right now. Your best chance to get a ride off Bathsheba is to go to the Midnight Wine. The Oberoi Line's Arosa Sun is in port. Their captain hangs out there. His name is Litner. He likes girls your age and you're attractive enough to get his attention. Oberoi doesn't have any regulations about their senior officers having guests but it doesn't like scandals, and Litner is unpopular enough with his crew that they would be more than happy to give them one, so he'll treat you well enough. Just be prepared to be dumped off before the Sun reaches her home port."

She remembered his name now, Asagawo. "Thanks Officer Asagawo," she said. "I'll do that. Remember your promise to watch out for Jenni and Concepcion."

The police officer started to release his grip on Trance then tightened it again. "I'll do my best but I want you to promise me something too," he said. "I want you to promise me that when you get away from here you're going to fly straight. Will you promise me that?"

Trance nodded her head in affirmation and the police officer released her wrist. "Clear skies, Grape."

"And safe landings, Officer Asagawo," returned Trance completing the farewell that was old before the first artificial satellite had been placed in orbit around Earth.

Trance made her way to the Midnight Wine. She was familiar with the location having worked it before in her days as a dipper. It seemed rather downscale for the captain of an FTA vessel but considering Litner's tastes it made sense. A lot of the younger girls worked the Midnight Wine because it was normally a hangout for the younger spacers.

There were a few patrons in the bar but it was too early for most of the girls who worked the bars to be out which was a good thing from Trance's point of view. She wouldn't have any competition and she was going to need to think up a way to approach Litner. She needed to convince him to take her off planet, not just to the nearest hotel.

Litner was easy enough to spot. He was sitting at the bar wearing a fancy flight suit with his company's logo embroidered on one breast and a hat with a captain's insignia on the counter beside him. He was also wearing a watch on one wrist which her practiced eye recognized as valuable. She sat down on the stool beside him, removed her cloak and backpack, and ordered a non alcoholic beverage. She could almost feel his eyes undressing her as she sipped her drink. She had had men stare at her before and while she had never taken any up on their offers it normally hadn't bothered her when they looked, but Litner made her feel dirty just sitting beside him.

After a few moments of letting him stare she made her move and dropped her communicator. She got off the bar stool and leaned over to pick it up letting Litner get a look at her cleavage as she did so. As she picked it up she feigned loosing her balance and stumbled into him. He automatically put his arms around her to steady her and when she stepped away from him he he got up off his stool.

"Well hello," said Litner. "You're all dressed up. Waiting for some special fellow?"

"You could say that," answered Trance, "but I'm not sure who that lucky fellow is yet."

Litner picked up on the hint immediately. "And what would it take to be that lucky fellow?" he asked.

"A ride off this planet," answered Trance.

Litner frowned that hadn't been the answer he was expecting.

Trance decided that the best approach would be the desperate and helpless one. It wouldn't be hard since she was desperate. She was feeling lightheaded from lack of food and it wouldn't be long before the word got out to Fagin and Sikes that she had been spotted at the spaceport trying to get a ride off planet.

"Please, Mister," she said. "You're the captain of a starship. Can you help me get out of here? I can work for passage. I'm a real hard worker."

"Just what are you willing to do to for passage?" said Litner.

"Anything."

"Anything?" There was an emphasis on the word.

"Anything," said Trance. She knew what anything was going to mean. Her skin almost crawled when Litner placed his hand on her arm.

The negotiations were abruptly interrupted by a third voice, a woman's. "You don't have to go that route if you don't want to, girl. You can earn passage on the Maru, and it will be work that you do in the vertical position, not lying on your back."

Trance turned her head in the direction of the new voice. A blonde haired woman in a worn pilot's flight suit was standing a few feet from them. Most unusually the woman was wearing a holstered pistol. While it wasn't strictly illegal to carry a firearm in the port, as long as it was carried openly, it was strongly discouraged. And as wearing one invariably attracted unwanted attention from the port police very few individuals did. If the woman was carrying one it meant that either she was a newcomer to the port or that she didn't care what the port authorities thought. Trance quickly decided that taking her offer couldn't be any worse than taking Litner's.

Litner began to bluster then stopped in mid sentence as the woman began to draw her weapon. He removed his hand from Trance's arm as if it had suddenly become red hot. As Litner removed his hand from Trance's arm, she removed the watch he had been wearing thinking it might be useful later.

"I think the girl has changed her mind," said the woman. "Why don't you find another bar to troll in?" Then, switching her attention to Trance, she said, "We're heading for Dawkinstown Drift. Will that be OK?"

"Anywhere away from here will be fine," said Trance.

"It's settled then; you 'll be working for me till we reach Dawkinstown. I'm Beka Valentine, captain of the Eureka Maru.


	10. Epilogue

_Time: CY 10088 May 5166_

_Location: the Eureka Maru_

"I see," said Beka drawing out the two words when Trance was through with her story.

"You don't seem very surprised by it," said Trance.

"No," agreed Beka as she put down the cup of coffee she had been holding. "It's pretty much what I expected ever since the day I first met you. I can understand you not wanting to tell Harper about it, but I think you should have done so well before now. He shouldn't have had to find out this way."

Harper started to say something but closed his mouth when Beka made a 'zip it ' sign, slashing her finger across her mouth.

"What does bother me is that you didn't tell me about it before we landed." Beka's voice was calm and controlled but Trance knew from previous experience that when Beka was this calm when she was reprimanding one of her crew it meant she was furious. The younger woman tried to meet Beka's eyes and failed, turning them down towards her own coffee cup which had sat untouched from the start of her story.

"You could have put all of us in danger," continued Beka. "If Sikes or Fagin learned you were here and tried to move against you, we wouldn't have had any advance warning. And what about the police? There's a good chance they'll hear about you being here as well. If you'd told me before we landed I'd have kept you out of sight aboard the Maru. When Harper and I go out tomorrow we'll be constantly looking over our shoulders because we've been associated with you."

"You know, Boss," said Harper deciding it was time to speak up for his wife, "if it wasn't for a lot of luck and some good people you could have been Jenni. From what Trance said it doesn't sound as if Jenni's father was any better than yours. But you had your brother, and later when your father died you had the Abernathys."

"I'm nothing like that whore," said Beka indignantly.

"No," pressed Harper, "but you could have been." Before Beka could fashion a retort he came at her from another angle. "You've told us what your father did. He dealt the junk that Jenni is addicted to. Jenni and Concepcion looked after Trance when she was stranded here, tried to keep her out of trouble. If it hadn't been for them she wouldn't be here with us now. Like it or not, Boss, we owe them. So what are we going to do?"

**TO BE CONTINUED**  
- in Trances Gift: written by Xeromem and krashkart and posted by Xeromem


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